No-Bake Pumpkin Pie Charlotte

It’s officially November 1st and so we all need to start thinking about Thanksgiving. I’m not saying to plan everything out to a T already, but at least let’s have it in our peripheral. We don’t want to get caught off guard at the last minute and have to scramble for ideas in the final hour. It’s also officially the last pumpkin post in our pumpkin marathon. I hope you’ve been keeping up with all of them, and I hope you’ve enjoyed the recipes. This one is a nod to the good ol’ pumpkin pie. It’s like a pumpkin pie meets cheesecake meets charlotte and the best part about it is that you don’t have to bake it. No baking involved whatsoever. That means you can free up some oven space and make this ahead of time so you don’t have a million things to do on Thanksgiving Day. If you’re looking for more traditional pumpkin pie recipes though, I might suggest this double crust version and this crème brûlée version. They’re still some of my favorites from the past!

Line the ladyfingers (without splitting them apart) around the edges of a 9-inch springform pan. Once the sides are lined, arrange the rest on the bottom of the pan, breaking off any to fit them in a single layer; set aside.

**Note: It’s best to keep the lady fingers intact when lining the sides of the pan because it’ll prevent any of the filling from leaking out while the charlotte sets!**

In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and brown sugar until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat 1 3/4 cups heavy cream with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla until stiff peaks form.

Set aside 1/2 cup of the whipped cream you just made, and fold the remaining whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until evenly combined throughout. 

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, spreading it out into an even layer, as best as possible. Set side while you make the pumpkin layer.

In that same bowl, combine the milk, pudding mix, spices, and pumpkin until throughly mixed and evenly incorporated. It should feel like it’s starting to thicken up, and that’s because of the pudding mix.

Fold in the reserved whipped cream from earlier and pour over the cream cheese layer. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

**Note: It really is crucial for the cake to chill for as much as possible (if not overnight) because it’ll make slicing a lot easier later on. If you make it first thing in the morning, it should be good to go by the evening when you plan on serving it!**

Just before serving, beat the remaining heavy cream, with the remaining 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Dollop on top of the charlotte and garnish with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon.

**Tip: You can just dollop the cream on the center of the cake or you can do what I did, and pipe it out in a nice decorative design along the edges of the cake! It’s completely up to you and whatever you feel comfortable doing.**

Remove the sides of the pan and slice and serve immediately. Leftovers can be wrapped in plastic and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

I love this dessert because it’s completely no-bake and takes some help from the store with the lady fingers and with the instant pudding mix. Some of you might not like the use of the mix, but honestly it makes it so much easier to set and slice later on. If you don’t use ingredients like that all the time, every once in a while it’s okay. Live a little!

This is really the perfect autumn dessert, great for the Thanksgiving table if you’re looking for something new and exciting and trying to step away from pumpkin pie for the year. I love pumpkin pie, but it’s nice to deviate every once in a while and switch things up. The fact that you don’t have to take up oven space or worry about making a crust is what really seals the Thanksgiving deal! Let me know what you think below!

No-Bake Pumpkin Pie Charlotte

Looking for an easy no-bake autumn dessert? This No-Bake Pumpkin Pie Charlotte will be your new favorite. It's like pumpkin pie meets pumpkin cheesecake!

Servings 8 to 12 servings

Prep Time 8 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Total Time 8 hours hrs 15 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 2 3-ounce packages ladyfingers
• 6 ounces cream cheese softened
• 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 2 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream divided
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar divided
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract divided
• 1 cup cold whole milk
• 1 5.1-ounce box instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 15-ounce can solid pumpkin purée

Instructions

• Line the ladyfingers (without splitting them apart) around the edges of a 9-inch springform pan. You can break off one or two at the end, to make them fit, but keeping them attached for the most part will prevent the filling from leaking! Once the sides are lined, arrange the rest on the bottom of the pan, breaking off any to fit them in a single layer; set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and brown sugar until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat 1 3/4 cups heavy cream with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla until stiff peaks form. Set aside 1/2 cup of the whipped cream. Fold the remaining whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and spread into the prepared pan in an even layer.
• In that same bowl, combine the milk, pudding mix, spices, and pumpkin until throughly mixed and evenly incorporated. Fold in the reserved whipped cream and pour over the cream cheese layer. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
• Just before serving, beat the remaining heavy cream, with the remaining 2 tablespoons powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Dollop on top of the charlotte and garnish with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon. Remove sides of pan, slice and serve. Refrigerate any leftovers. Enjoy!

Author: The Candid Appetite